Low GDP growth last year did not stop South African banks from growing headline earnings by 6.6% in the 2016 financial year. Total revenue growth across the banks was 9% compared to 2015's 8.8%. The impact of the drought, which affected economic activity across all sectors, and low credit and investment growth meant the banks were under immense pressure in 2016. "Under these circumstances, these results were not bad, but if anything they demonstrate how resilient the banks were in the face of a very difficult operating environment," said Andy Bates, financial services Africa leader at EY.It was the weakest headline earnings growth for South African banks since 2009, following the global financial crisis, which caused headline earnings to drop by 21%. In 2015, banks enjoyed a high of 16.5% in headline earnings growth. Africa's largest economies — those of Nigeria, Angola and South Africa — are all facing headwinds of a different kind. "What was interesting about 2016 was that for the...
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